Down to be wrong – English Lyrics

• By: HAIM

Lyrics & Translation

Explore the emotional complexity of self-preservation with HAIM's "Down to be wrong." This track showcases the band's signature California rock sound infused with raw honesty. By listening, you can learn the nuance in prioritizing your own peace, even when it means walking away without a clear victory, making it a special anthem for personal resolve.

[English]

Down to be wrong, don't need to be right

I left you the keys, I left on the lights

I locked myself out of the house

I'm on the next flight, you can't talk me out of it, yeah

From the window seat, I can see the street

Where we used to sleep, it was all a dream, ha

You thought I would fall back in your arms

But I lost my heart and the future's gone with it

Oh, I bet you wish it could be easy to change my mind

Oh-oh, I bet you wish it could be easy, but it's not this time

I ain't coming back, I ain't coming down

I was so high last night, I thought, "Burn it to the ground"

You never helped me, it was like hell for me

But you're the greatest pretender, so just keep pretendin'

Just keep pretendin'

Oh, I bet you wish it could be easy to change my mind

Oh-oh, I bet you wish it could be easy, but it's not this time

Boy, I crushed my whole heart

Tryin' to fit my soul into your arms

And I crushed up these pills

And I still couldn't take 'em, I still couldn't take 'em

I bet you wish it could be easy to change my mind

I bet you wish it could be easy, but it's not this time

Oh-oh, did you think it would keep me busy holding the line?

Oh-oh-oh, I didn't think it would be so easy 'til I left it behind

Down to be wrong, don't need to be right

Down to be wrong, don't need to be right

Down to be wrong (this train won't turn around)

Don't need to be right (the light's cutting through the clouds)

Down to be wrong (my feet are on the ground)

Don't need to be right (and I keep walking)

Down to be wrong (don't need you to understand)

Don't need to be right (I don't know if you can)

Down to be wrong (red lights are up ahead)

Don't need to be right (but I'll keep walking)

Down to be wrong, don't need to be right

Down to be wrong

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
wrong wɹɔŋ A1	adjective - not correct or true
flight flaɪt A1	noun - a journey through the air in an aircraft
seat sit A1	noun - a place to sit
street stɹit A1	noun - a public road in a city or town
sleep sliːp A1	verb - to rest in a state of inactivity
dream dɹim A1	noun - a series of thoughts, images, and sensations occurring in a person's mind during sleep
fall fɔl A1	verb - to move downward, typically rapidly and freely
future fjutʃəɹ A1	noun - the time or a period of time following the moment of speaking or writing
bet bɛt A2	verb - to risk money on the outcome of an event
easy ˈiːzi A1	adjective - achieved without great effort
coming kʌmɪŋ A1	verb - to arrive or approach
high haɪ A1	adjective - great, or greater than normal, in quantity, size, or intensity
pretender pɹɪˈtɛndɜɹ B1	noun - a person who pretends to be someone else or to have qualities or abilities that they do not possess
crushed kɹʌʃt A2	verb - to press or squeeze something until it breaks or becomes flat
soul soʊl A2	noun - the spiritual or immaterial part of a human being or animal, regarded as immortal
pills pɪlz A1	noun - a small rounded object that you swallow, containing medicine or drugs
busy bɪzi A1	adjective - having a lot to do
train tɹeɪn A1	noun - a series of connected railway cars that move along a track
light laɪt A1	noun - the natural agent that stimulates sight and makes things visible
clouds klaʊdz A1	noun - a visible mass of condensed water vapor floating in the atmosphere

Key Grammar Structures

• I left you the keys, I left on the lights

  ➔ Past Simple Tense

  ➔ The use of the Past Simple indicates completed actions in the past. The repetition emphasizes a deliberate act of leaving things behind. "left" is the past form of "leave".

• You thought I would fall back in your arms

  ➔ Conditional Mood (Second Conditional - implied)

  ➔ This sentence expresses an unreal or hypothetical situation. The structure implies 'If you had thought I would fall...', using 'would' to express the result. It's a prediction about what *didn't* happen.

• Boy, I crushed my whole heart

  ➔ Figurative Language (Metaphor)

  ➔ "Crushed my whole heart" is a metaphor. It doesn't literally mean the speaker physically broke their heart, but rather experienced intense emotional pain and heartbreak.

• Tryin' to fit my soul into your arms

  ➔ Gerund as Object of Preposition

  ➔ "Tryin'" is a contraction of "trying", functioning as a gerund (a verb acting as a noun) and is the object of the preposition "to". It shows the action of trying.

• Down to be wrong, don't need to be right

  ➔ Infinitive of Purpose (implied)

  ➔ The phrase implies a willingness to accept being incorrect. 'To be wrong' and 'to be right' function as infinitives expressing a state of being, and the willingness to embrace either outcome.